Express Newark Unveils “Ritual,” Exhibitions of Contemporary Muslim Art

Images and art by Muslim artists in America and overseas–including portraits of Black Muslims in Newark–were the focus of “Ritual,’’ a months-long series of Express Newark programs launched at a recent opening.

The event celebrated Muslim artists exploring concepts of faith and how it is conveyed through ritual.

“Faith describes an unseen feeling, an idea, or spiritual act that encourages us to move beyond ourselves to something greater,’’ said Salamishah Tillet, executive director of Express Newark, a collaborative arts center geared toward social change and supported by Rutgers-Newark. “It is maintained by rituals. They become the foundation for how people live in the world.”

Tillet and other speakers at the opening emphasized the importance of faith during a time of political turmoil and federal attempts to repress freedom of expression and human rights.

“While we can’t claim the work here is going to compensate for everything happening outside these walls, it is another beginning and in that beginning we might be able to build different and better worlds,’’ she said.

“This is not an easy time,’’ added Rutgers-Newark Interim Chancellor Jeffrey Robinson. “We need places where you can recharge. What I see in this room is important for Americans to understand. When we bring everyone together to talk to one another…There’s a certain joy, no matter what background or lived experience you’re coming from.’’

The centerpiece exhibition, called “Powers of the Unseen’’ and on display in Express Newark’s Paul Robeson Gallery, features a range of artists who document and interpret the Muslim world, past and present, through images and multimedia pieces. The title of the exhibition translates an Islamic concept referring to that which is hidden from the visible world and beyond human perception.

The photo-based works examine the intersection of spirituality and art and the limits of representation. Its co-curators are Rutgers - Newark Professors Sandrine Colard, Wendell Marsh, Alex Dika Seggerman, and visiting curator Aude Tournaye.
 
Work in “Powers of the Unseen” includes Gordon Parks’ images of Malcolm X and members of the Nation of Islam in the early 1960s, along with contemporary images by photographer Chester Higgins, whose work includes photos of sacred Muslim thresholds, such as a man praying in Ethiopia's holy Sol Omar Caves. 

Artist Aminda Kadous adhered photographs of demolished Egyptian tombs to piles of bricks. The historic sites were destroyed to make way for a massive multilane highway.

Marsh, an Africana Studies professor who teaches a course called Islam and the African Experience, acknowledged that the theme of the exhibition might seem esoteric.

But he urged visitors to consider how Islam can be depicted and contemplated from the lens of Muslim artists themselves–unlike the many “disparaging” images that stem from a Western perspective of “power and empire.’’

“If you don’t quite understand it, it’s ok,’’ Marsh reassured. “But I suggest you do something that Chester Higgins talks about–the ‘signature of the spirit.’ Look for the signature of the spirit and take it as an entry into the process of learning and discovery.’’

In addition to “Powers of the Unseen,’’ exhibitions in “Ritual” include  “Dreams and Prayers,’’ portraits of African American Muslims in Newark posing against a backdrop of prayer rugs sewn together by photographer and Brooklyn-based artist Nzingah Oyo.

“I appreciate the opportunity to photograph and create stories of generations in Newark,’’ she said. “Oftentimes, we get a little overlooked.’’

Another exhibition on display at Express Newark showcased prayer rugs designed by 14 students in Anthony Alvarez’s Problems in Contemporary Art class. Its titled “Sacred Rugs: Contemplation, Hope, Resilience.’’ The students’ work was informed by artist Dahlia Elsayed, who urged them to use the rugs as a medium to challenge fear and despair.

Elsayed’s exhibition, in Express Newark’s SHINE portrait studio, where Alvarez is assistant director, is entitled “Subtle Centers,’’ a collaboration with artist Andrew Demirjian. The installation features sounds, objects and mirrored reflections, prompting visitors to imagine a space between the physical and spiritual worlds.

The opening of “Ritual’’ also featured a video of Express Newark artist-in-residence Younes Baba-Ali, a Moroccan-born artist based in Brussels who has begun working on his two-part installation, “Carroussa Sonore,” which translates as “sounding cart.’’ The video was made by filmmaker and Express Newark employee Babis Denis and features a processional down Broad Street led by Express Newark’s Community Media Center artist and Rutgers-Newark alum, Fajr Kegler.

The work engages those who live and work in Newark, including artists and students who work closely with Baba Ali to create site-specific sound art works performed throughout city neighborhoods by street vendors and performance artists.